How Bad Is Traffic on South Hill?

Ask anyone in Pierce County about South Hill and traffic comes up within a sentence or two. The reputation is earned. It is also a little exaggerated, and it is very dependent on where you are and when.

Here is a fair account from someone who drives it every week.

The short version

South Hill has one main road, and nearly everything is on it. Meridian, which is State Route 161, runs north and south down the center of the plateau. The mall, the big stores, most restaurants, and many medical offices line it for miles. So does a traffic signal at nearly every major cross street.

That design produces predictable slowdowns:

• Weekday mornings, northbound toward State Route 512
• Weekday afternoons, southbound from State Route 512, from about 3 to 6:30
• Saturday and Sunday afternoons, both directions, near the retail
• The weeks before the winter holidays, near the mall

Outside those windows, Meridian moves. At 10 a.m. on a Tuesday or 8 p.m. on a Thursday, you can drive the length of the hill without much trouble.

Why it backs up

Four things combine.

One spine. A plateau of roughly 65,000 people, plus tens of thousands more in Graham and Frederickson to the south, funnels onto a single state highway to reach State Route 512.

Everything is on it. The same road that carries commuters carries every shopping trip. Drivers turn in and out of parking lots along its whole length.

Signals. There are many, and cross traffic is heavy at each major intersection.

Few ways down. Only a handful of roads connect the plateau to the valley and the freeways. When one has trouble, the rest fill.

Add steady residential growth to the south, and you have the picture. The road has been widened and improved in sections over the years, and volume has grown along with it.

The slowest stretches

From north to south.

The descent into the valley at the north end is its own category. Meridian drops down the hill into downtown Puyallup, and it is slow when the valley is busy, especially during the fair.

The parallel routes locals use

Residents rarely drive the full length of Meridian at peak hours. They use the roads on either side.

West of Meridian

• 94th Avenue East, which becomes 9th Street Southwest as it drops into the valley. It runs toward State Route 512 near the mall and is the most used alternative.
• Canyon Road East, farther west. It is faster and has an interchange with State Route 512. It is the best north and south route for anyone on the west side of the plateau.
• Fruitland Avenue East, which runs down the hill into the valley on the west side.

East of Meridian

• Shaw Road East, which runs down the east side of the hill to the valley near State Route 410 and State Route 167.
• 122nd Avenue East and the roads through the Sunrise area, which carry local traffic on the east side of the plateau.
• Woodland Avenue East and other collectors that link neighborhoods without touching Meridian.

East and west across the hill

• 112th, 128th, 136th, 152nd, 160th, and 176th Streets East are the main crossings. Which one is fastest changes with the hour.

None of these is a secret, and each has its own slow points. Together they give you choices, and choice is what makes the hill livable.

Where you live decides how much you feel it

This is the part that matters when you are buying a home.

The north end of the plateau is close to State Route 512. You can be on the freeway in a few minutes without driving much of Meridian at all. You do live with mall traffic.

The middle of the hill puts you ten to fifteen minutes from the freeway at peak times. You will learn the parallel routes.

The south end is the long haul. Fifteen to twenty-five minutes to State Route 512 at rush hour is common. If you commute north every day, that is added to both ends of your trip.

East versus west of Meridian matters more than people expect.

• If your daily trips go toward Tacoma, Lakewood, or JBLM, live west of Meridian. You can use Canyon Road and never cross the main road.
• If your daily trips go toward Sumner, Auburn, Kent, or Bonney Lake, live east of Meridian. Shaw Road takes you down the east side.
• If you live on the wrong side, you cross Meridian twice a day at a signal. It sounds minor. It is one of the most common complaints.

Left turns. A neighborhood whose only exit is an unsignaled left turn onto a busy arterial is a daily frustration. When you tour a home, drive out of the neighborhood in the direction you would go at 7:30 a.m.

Errands without the headache

Most South Hill residents shop on Meridian because that is where the stores are. A few habits help.

• Go early or late. Before 10 a.m. on weekends and after 7 p.m. on weekdays are easy.
• Chain your stops on one side of the road so you make right turns in and right turns out.
• Use the back entrances. Many shopping centers can be reached from side streets.
• Know your second-choice store. There are grocery and hardware options off Meridian, on Canyon Road, and in the valley.
• Order ahead for pickup at the busiest times of year.

School traffic

School start and release times add a second, shorter rush around each campus. Several high schools and junior highs sit near the main arterials, and the streets around them slow for twenty to thirty minutes in the morning and again in mid-afternoon.

If you are considering a home near a school, visit at release time. Some buyers love being close enough to walk. Others do not want the line of cars in front of the driveway.

Walking, biking, and the bus

South Hill was built for cars, and it shows.

Walking. Inside most subdivisions, sidewalks and quiet streets make for pleasant walks. Walking out of the subdivision to a store is another matter. Arterials are wide, crossings are far apart, and distances are long. A few pockets near the mall and near newer mixed developments are exceptions.

Biking. Confident riders use the collector streets and the paved trail at South Hill Community Park. Meridian itself is not a comfortable bike route.

Buses. Pierce Transit runs routes along Meridian and across to Lakewood and Tacoma, with a transit center near the mall. They are useful for some trips and slow for most, since the buses sit in the same traffic.

If walking to coffee or dinner is high on your list, look at downtown Puyallup instead. I compare the two in my post on downtown Puyallup versus South Hill.

What traffic does to home values

Location inside the hill shows up in price and in how quickly a home sells.

• Homes near the north end, with a short run to State Route 512, draw the widest pool of buyers, because they work for almost any commute.
• Homes at the far south end tend to offer more house and a newer build for the money. The drive is the reason.
• Homes that back onto Meridian or another arterial sell at a discount to the same home a block or two in. Road noise is the cause, and it does not go away.
• Homes on quiet interior streets with an easy, signaled exit are the ones buyers compete for.

When you compare two houses, compare where they sit as closely as you compare the kitchens.

When it gets worse

• Rain. Most winter days. Add a few minutes.
• Crashes. One collision on Meridian or at the State Route 512 interchange can add twenty minutes to every route on the hill.
• Snow and ice. A few days a year. The hill routes down to the valley are steep, and they close or clog quickly. Residents on the plateau sometimes stay home.
• The fair. In September, the valley end of Meridian and the streets around the fairgrounds are slow, particularly on weekends and concert nights.
• Holiday shopping. From late November through December, avoid the mall area on weekend afternoons unless that is where you are going.
• Construction. The county and state regularly have projects on the plateau's arterials. Summer is paving season.

Is it getting better?

Some pieces are. The state and county have widened parts of Meridian and the main cross streets, added turn lanes, and retimed signals over the years. Pierce County has long-range plans for the Canyon Road corridor, including a future connection north toward Fife that would give the west side of the plateau a second regional outlet.

Growth works in the other direction. Housing continues to be built on the south end of the hill and beyond it in Graham and Frederickson, and those residents use the same roads.

My read: expect conditions to stay about as they are, with local improvements. Do not buy a home on the assumption that a future project will fix its commute. Buy a location that works today.

How it compares

A fair comparison helps.

• Against a small town, South Hill traffic is heavy.
• Against Seattle, Bellevue, or Interstate 5 through Tacoma, it is mild. It is slow, signalized, suburban congestion. It is not stopped freeway traffic for an hour.
• Against other fast-growing suburbs, it is typical. Bonney Lake has State Route 410. Lacey has its own version. Any plateau of subdivisions built around one highway looks like this.

People who move here from larger metro areas often shrug at it. People who move here from quieter places notice it right away.

Living with it

Residents who are happy on the hill tend to have a few things in common.

1. They chose their location around their daily trips, not around the house alone.
2. They know two or three routes to every regular destination.
3. They shift their timing by fifteen or twenty minutes when they can.
4. They keep a mental list of places off Meridian for groceries, coffee, and gas.
5. They accept the trade. They wanted a newer home, a yard, and nearby stores, and this is what comes with it.

How to judge it for yourself

If you are here, do this before you make an offer.

1. Drive Meridian from State Route 512 to 176th Street at 5 p.m. on a weekday. That is close to the worst case.
2. Drive it again at 10 a.m. That is the normal case.
3. From the home you are considering, drive to the freeway at your real commute time, once on Meridian and once on the nearest parallel route.
4. Pull out of the neighborhood in each direction at rush hour.
5. Make a grocery run on a Saturday afternoon.

If you are not here, send me the address. I will drive it at the times that matter to you and tell you what I find.

Frequently asked questions

Is traffic bad on South Hill in Puyallup?

It is slow on Meridian at weekday rush hours and on weekend afternoons, especially near State Route 512 and the mall. Outside those times it moves, and parallel routes help.

What is the worst time to drive on Meridian?

Weekday afternoons from about 3 to 6:30 southbound, weekend afternoons near the stores, and the weeks before the winter holidays near the mall.

What are the alternatives to Meridian on South Hill?

West of Meridian, 94th Avenue East and Canyon Road East. East of Meridian, Shaw Road East and the collectors through the Sunrise area. Several numbered streets cross the hill east to west.

Which part of South Hill has the least traffic trouble?

The north end is closest to State Route 512. Beyond that, living on the same side of Meridian as your daily destinations, west for Tacoma and JBLM or east for Sumner and Auburn, makes the biggest difference.

Does snow close the roads on South Hill?

A few days in a typical year, the steep roads between the plateau and the valley become icy and slow or impassable. Residents plan around it.

Related reading

• Which Parts of Puyallup Are Best for Your Commute?
• Downtown Puyallup vs. South Hill: What Is the Difference?
• Quiet Neighborhoods in Puyallup: Where to Look
• Commuting From Puyallup to Joint Base Lewis-McChord

Equal Housing Opportunity. Austin Robertson, License # 21036843, Austin Robertson and Allena Robertson Real Estate Brokers, regulated by the Washington State Department of Licensing (DOL). This article is general information only. It is not legal, tax, insurance, lending, or construction advice, and it is not an appraisal of any property. Robertson & Co. supports fair housing and does not describe or recommend neighborhoods based on who lives there. Costs, rates, and rules change. Confirm the details with the sources linked above before you act.